Gallows Road - the original

I submitted this in an open club competition. It went out in the

first round, but at the break, a member offered to buy it. :-)

 

Puts things in perspective . . . . . .

Club competitons tend to be a bit traditional. Nice abstract -- really popped the colors. I'm curious about the title.

I've taken the liberty of replacing the rather gaudy experiment that was chosen as a POW with the original image which has been critically received out in "real world" where it was selected for an "Equal" award (a sort of "honorable mention") at the Art League in Alexandria , Va. by Anne Collins Goodyear, Assistant Curator of Prints and Drawings, Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery.

 

I've also included the comments that accompanied this image when it was posted shortly after the POW.

 

(It wouldn't be such a big deal if the altered version wasn't featured in a google image search on my name. ugh.)

 

Critiques:

 

David Bradley Photo.net Patron, April 24, 2005; 03:42 P.M.

6/6

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karen habbestad Photo.net Patron, April 24, 2005; 07:12 P.M.

excellent. the strong diagonals really set this apart Carl. Great color palette too.

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Quintessential Carlrootian

Salvatore Mele Photo.net Patron, April 25, 2005; 02:26 A.M.

I decided not to compare it with the POW... they are after all too different from the chromatic point of view that I fail to tell what I like the most...the only thing that I realise is that, without "screaming colours" here I appreciate more the interplay between the different rythms in the diagonal and vertical lines.

 

As for a comparison with the other, cold-coloured, instalment of this scene, to me this is superior hands down. The pastel tones are more interesting in that some warmer areas and colder areas survive throughout the scene, and add a third and even a fourth pattern to those you had already.

 

What I mean is that here I can easily see the vertical rythm (not all regular since some windows break it) the diagonal one, always evident, and a cold/warm one which, at second sight, becomes the horizontal brick/window/brick/sky rythm... Strangely enough, this two horizontal structure did not jump at me at all in the other (two) instalment(s).

 

In conclusion, go with this to your reflections in architecture exibit! (And do not take that tree away from the other shot...)

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Carl Root Photo.net Patron Prolific Poster, April 25, 2005; 07:23 A.M. (edit | delete)

Salvatore, you've nailed it, both the changes I've made, and why I made them.

 

. . . . so I replaced v3 with v4!

 

The darkest blue and pastel areas, especially on the left side, were too noisy, and the latter was a bit too dark which created a competition between the dark shapes and lighter background.

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Pulok Pattanayak , April 25, 2005; 10:15 A.M.

Nice abstract.

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Pawel Czapiewski Photo.net Patron, May 04, 2005; 03:10 P.M.

Fresh look of this hit image. Regards,

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Quintessential Carlrootian?

 

Bob's Gaudy Version of Carl's Photo

 

Robert Brown Photo.net Patron Prolific Poster, May 06, 2005; 01:39 P.M.

Dr. Mele's comments here seem to have pretty well summed things up, and I agree that this is probably the best in the series. It's both an extremely complex, yet very soothing photo. There's certainly enough going on here to keep both the viewer's eyes and mind engaged for quite a while.

 

Carl, as usual, I'm going to upload a slightly (and I do mean slightly) gaudier version of this for your disapproval!

 

P.S. In this case, I don't think the increased saturation works--I think your original colors were right on.

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@nthony Pete?son , May 06, 2005; 06:48 P.M.

I always liked this one, the the perfect angles. I would have called it "Isosceles", even if it really isn't really.

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Carl Root Photo.net Patron Prolific Poster, May 06, 2005; 11:35 P.M. (edit | delete)

The saturation on my original upload a few days ago looked just like that, but I've been trying all along to make the image about the angles without the colors being too much of distraction. Took a few detours, but I'm happy with this one, finally.

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Dave Nitsche Photo.net Patron, May 20, 2005; 04:45 P.M.

Carl, a great image. There is nothing I can offer up in an attempt to make it better. Of all the reflection shots you have done this is by far my favorite. The wonderful earth tones presented are amazing when considering they are being generated by a man made structure. The diagonals and converging lines offer up a maze of textures, shapes and separately framed images all within one picture.

 

One of your best IMO.

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Carl Root Photo.net Patron Prolific Poster, May 21, 2005; 09:29 A.M. (edit | delete)

Dave, good to hear from you.

 

You have to be careful attributing the colors to the architecture. To me it's more about the lines, and the effects of the digitial warming are an attempt to keep colors from being an unpleasant distraction, rather than a feature. The original capture in this folder clearly needed some correction to get rid of the usual bluish cast, and this is my attempt to deal with that and not get carried away.

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Jack McRitchie Photo.net Patron, March 07, 2006; 01:17 A.M.

It's all been said but I'll add my "amen" to the chorus.

deepseapeach

more vibrant colors.....

club comps have always been craps shoots, but I can see how this was jettisoned by a less than lenient judge, especially one of the "it's all or nothing" persuasion. to me, this is compositionally static as a horizontal with the nearly repetitive (red) and continuing (blue) areas on the right, as opposed to the far more interesting patterns on the left. (yep, an "echo" can aesthetically "hurt" an image if it's less interesting than what it echoes). a square crop (up to and including the first red triangle on the right) would have made this a far more dynamic, tense, and interesting image!

Nice symmetry. Good combination of colors and lines ... all pleasing to the eye.

Hey Carl, I'm with you about the old club competitions. I don't how yours operate, but in my club, judging is done according to very strict (i.e., very stiff) rules. Therefore, I've seen very original work go down in flames because such work didn't adhere to the formalism required for judging. I just had one of mine get thrashed with the comment, "Its beautifully printed, but why did you even bother taking the picture." Good to see you got a good fiscal result despite the outcome of the competition. Its a gorgeous piece of work and the sale is well-deserved.

Jeez Carl, this is brilliant. The use of diagonals is amazing. I would buy this also.

 

A personal fave for me... just amazing...

Excellent work!

Peggy, thanks for your analysis. Before I offer mine may I ask you to check out my previous unaltered upload for comparision.

 

On the subject of club competitions, I should note that the judges, Frank Van Riper and his wife Judith Goodman, made it clear that altered images were not something they were comfortable selecting. In the the open color print category, she threw out OZ 9 (I knew he wanted to keep it in, but it was supposed to primarily be her show). She picked the recently uploaded 'Power Lines' image as an honorable mention (no, they didn't see the musical reference) and picked 'Jacobs Bros', a detail shot in my piano folder, for first place (out of 37 entries.)

 

For what it's worth, I would have pretty much reversed the order of the three entries.

Andy, I should mention that judges are free to select images using any criteria they like. . . . and in case I sound like I'm being too hard on judges, I've done it before, and it's harder than you think, especially since you're usually expected to explain your reasons for both awards and rejections. Anyone want to try going through the critique list without skipping any and offer only comments? (50 images minimum - we usually have about a hundred.)

Carl, wondeful shot. No surprise about the club competition. They follow a certain mindset. In my experience had this been a butterfly, flower, or some bird it would have done well. Left that scene a while ago. They tend to stifle creativity

Carl the orange really makes this one PoP! I love it!

Diagonals work very well with a square crop, and I agree with the poster above that the left has more going for it than the right. Excellent!

...and I'm sure you've accomplished that with this image. Forget the clubs (not that I've ever joined one,) and I even dare say forget the ratings. Only you yourself know where "the beef" is. Congratulations.

Carl, you did it again...

Carl, it is a very nicly balanced composition. And colors. What adds interest is the varaiety of lines and their division. Club judges.....ignor. Pnina

Here's an earlier version. I like it better, but hesitated to post it since I did it in jpeg and can't figure out how I did it, so I can't duplicate it in a large print size!

nice.

Thats two in a row for me Carl!Great use of diagonals and verticals and of course those popping colors that are so dear to my callused heart.Being a square man,Peggy's comments are interesting and do work IMO but so does this...and it works well.Your curves artistry has achieved a density in color that really enhances the textures that some of the panels have to offer,best example being the reds and black in lower left of image.This area is maybe worth a vignette if pixals allow?I cannot see any room for improvement here Carl and I certainly would like this hanging on my wall.POW material Carl.

Carl, I think this works because of the vibrant colors and repeating pattern. I like abstracts so this is very appealing to me.

To say that I have mixed feelings about the response to this image from both friends and enemies is an understatement.

 

Consider that the title of my RFC was 'What I Saw vs What I Did'.

 

I appreciate all the comments so far and promise to be back soon to fuel the fire. :-)

"Peggy, thanks for your analysis. Before I offer mine may I ask you to check out my previous unaltered upload for comparision."

no doubt to me that your unaltered version is aesthetcally inferior to the "gallows-2(curves)" of this thread. the colors and tones of the latter are cleaner and more pleasing. however, my critique goes to the composition and cropping which I think stands up better having a more impressive and impressionist architectural emphasis rather than as a blander and more predictable (er, "ho-hum", so what?) semi-abstract.

Got the Gallows thing right away, Carl!! :-) Did you stop at Grevey's or Sweet Water for a bite?

 

This is the BEST of your mirrored building shots. 7/7 for sure!! Going to try anything out at the Skyline tower (near route 7 and George Mason)? That's a gorgeous building when there's a spectacular sunrise reflected on it. I know because I'm usually sitting on I395 (a.k.a. "the parking lot") watching it. :-D

 

Thanks for bringing me gorgeous images from MY own world ... helps me appreciate this place a little more every time I visit your portfolio!! Regards!!